Bearing



F. LEISTER El AL BEARING March 10, 1936.

Filed March 14, 1934 TTE LE/STZ'PI v h nY/vch N E FA YE FRANK ATTORNEYS.

40 it impossible to readily insert and distribute gPatented Mar. 10, 1936 PATIENT OFFICE BEARING Fayette leister and Frank T. Lynch, New Britain, Co'nn., assignors to The Fafnir Bearing Company, New Britain, Conn, a corporation of Connecticut Application-March 14, 1934, Serial No. 715,412

5 Claims.

ur invention relates to a ball bearing. During the process of manufacture of all better grade ball bearings," the bearings are "matched; that is to say, particular sized balls are selected for insertion between particular sized rings so as to secure the proper fit.

Balls may be very accurately made and graded to size so that balls of a particular size vary from each other by 1/ 10000 of an inch or less. It is possible to grind the raceway grooves in the rings to the degree of accuracy to whichthe' balls have been graded, but grinding to such close tolerances is exceedingly expensive and impracticable from a manufacturing point of view.

One method of matching which has been used consists first in assuming a particular size of. ball to be employed, then grinding the outer ring to size with reasonable manufacturing tolerances, and then grinding the inner ring (with reasonable manufacturing tolerances) to flt the particular inner ring and balls of selected size. The rings are then put together and a few balls inserted between the rings to ascertain the fit of .the rings and balls. If the fit is too loose, the.

next larger ball size would be sel cted and the b'earingagain matched "and't s process repeated with "matching" balls of known size until just the desired fit is obtained.- The bearing is then loaded with its full complement of bearing balls of the size determined by, the matching process.

In the. bearing forming part of our invention,

, the outer ring is provided with an inwardly ex-.

tending integral seal flange at oneside of the bearing, and the inner ring is provided with an outwardly directed integral seal flange 'at'the opposite side of the bearing. Matching by'the process above described is impossible, or, at least impracticable ior the reason that the seal flanges 'so completely enclose the ball space as to render matching balls and thereafter remove such balls.

It is an object of our invention, therefore, to provi ea method of matching for ball bearings where the usual methods may not be satisfactorily employ d.

It is a further object to provide a bearing having'integral seals on the inner and outervrings sealing theball space and so proportioned that the bearing may be readily matched.

Other objects and features of invention will be hereinafter pointed out or will become apparent upon a reading of the specification.

- the entry of foreign matter.

Fig. 1 is a central sectional view of a completely assembled bearing illustrative of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a central sectional view of the hearing positioned and arranged for matching. In said drawing. 5 indicates an outer bearing ring-having a ball groove 6 therein. At one side 5 preferably a shoulder 8 is left and over which the 10 balls 9 must be snapped .when, the bearing is assembled.

The inner ring 'I I) is provided with a ball groove ill and when the bearing is assembled the balls 9 run in the grooves 6--l I, as will be understood. The inner ring H] has an outwardly directed integral seal flange l2 at the side of the bearing opposite the integral seal flange I. The flange l2 extends into sealing proximity to the outer ring li so that the ball space is substantially completely sealed against the loss-of grease and The drawing discloses a bearing on a very much enlarged scale so that the spaces between the integral seal flanges and the opposed rings are shown as quite large, but it is to be understood that, in practice, these spaces are, in fact, very small so as to have the sealing effect above noted.

In Fig. 1 a-fully assembled bearing is disclosed. The raceway grooves in -the rings are not in the longitudinal'centers of the rings as is usual in ball bearings, but the grooves are displaced enddescribed. Furthermore, the diameter of the intgral seal flange l2 indicated as-A on the drawing is less than the inner diameter of the outer ring marked B on the drawing. These proportions are of importance in the particular bearing shown. It is obvious that with the rings '5-10 positioned as shown in Fig f it would ,be

impossible, or, at least, utterly impracticable, to.

.match thebearing, for the reason that even though the rings were eccentrically displaced to some extent and a few matching balls were inserted between the rings, it would be exceedingly diflicult and impracticable to get the balls sufflciently distributed to properly determine the 50 fitrbetween the two rings and the matching balls and thereafter remove the matching balls. However, with the distance A less than the distance B and the distance "0 less than the d stance D, the rings may be turned relatively 55 end fonend and positioned as shown in Fig. 2 so that ,thraces S-H face each other, and yet there isfno interference between parts of the bearing rings-as would b e the case it the raceraceway grooves to. the inner face of the flange on said outer ring.

2. A single row anti-friction bearing comprising inner and outer bearing rings, said rings having opposed raceway grooves with a single row 5 way grooves were positioned centrally of the I y e of anti-friction bearing elements seated therein with therings positioned as 'shown in Fig. 2, d di aid in s in u i and i re a i it is clear that they may be eccentrically disa d Outer linghaving an inwardly d ected Sealplaoed and the requisite number of matching flange at e de Of the a g d inner balls lS-H-inserted between the rings and cirring h ving an outwardly direc ed ea g fl n cumjerentially di t ib t wh th proper at the opposite side of the bearing, said bearing ball size has been determined by the selection or being characterized y havi r way ro v s proper sized teh h l th rings are again displaced axially to one side of the center of the turned end for end so as to be positioned as bearing the Purpose Set forth. shown in Fig. 1, and the full complement of bear- The method matching a ball bearing mgbms snapped n place and the assepbly of comprising inner and outer bearing rings with the bearing is then complete. In order to facili- Opposed way o s a d each aving an intate assembly and permit the use of a (1 per s l ially extendin sealin flan e at the gro 5 th bearing rings maybe subject d t sides so as to normally completely enclose the djflerent temperatures; 1 r example, t outer ball space, which comprises turning one'of said ri may be heated so as t expand t same and rings relatively to the other'end for end so as to thus increase the space between the two rings bring Said Sealing. flanges adlacent to each other so th t th bearing b n may he more readily and until the ball races are in opposition to each forced over t shoulder 3 and into the groove other so as to leave one side of the bearing open, 6. When the bearing is assembled, end thrust 2 then t ically displaci theri s and inwill be taken imboth directions. Y Serting a few balls for matching, then reinov- While the invention has been described in 8 id-m i balls i s one cfJsaid considerable detail and a specific fom shown rings end for end into normal end relation 'to the it is to be understood that we do not wish to'be Other ring. and n inserting the f l p strictly limited t t t form Furthermore, by ment of bearing balls in.said raceway grooves.

designating the distances "A", B, 0" and "D",

Y we do not wish to limit ourselves to the particular bearing shown. The distances A", B, C, and D"-{are used merely to indicate distances which will permit an assembly of the rings reyersed from the normal as disclosed in Fig. 2.

The raceway grooves could be displaced toward the opposite end of the bearing from that shown,

6 in which case the-matching could be done by slipping the inner ring through the openi g efined by the flange I. until the grooves stand op-" nosite each other. Furthermore, when the design permits, one of the seal flanges could-be displaced inwardly from the edge or the ring to such positioned in the central plane of the bearing.

- Various changes and modiii'cations may be,

.made within the scope of the invention as deilnede in the appended claims.

\ We claim:

1. An n tiifriction bearing comprising inner andouter bearing rings, saidrings having oping an inwardly'directed sealing flange at, one

4. The method of matching a ball bearing comprising inner and outer bearing rings with opposed racew ay grooves and means which nor-- mally obstructs the space between said rings so as to prevent the normal ready entry of matching balls ther'ebetween by eccentric displacement ring until the raceway grooves in said rings stand opposite each other, eccentrically displacing the rings and insertinga few balls for matching,- then removing said matching balls, separating I said rings and turning one of said ,rings' end for extent that the raceway grooves could end into normal end relation to the other ring,

and then inserting the Iull complement of bear-.

prising inner and outer bearing r said rings. I

having opposed raceway grooves with a single row of anti-friction bearing elements therein and holding said rings in unit handling posed raceway grooves with anti-frictionv bear relation. said outer ring having an inwardly di! Y ingelements seated therein, said outer ring havrected sealing flange at' one side of the bearing side or the bearing, said, inner: ring having an size a n tend of the inner ai nner outwardly directed sealing flange at the oppos having an outwardly dir d se lin n e site side oi. the bearingQsaidbearing being char 1 h pp fil ide 1 h e ring and of a size of said outer'ri'ng whereby saidhian a'cterized by having the diameter 01' the flange 'c nabl cfpassing into the outer ring; said bears being. characterized by having raceway ves displaced axially to pne side oi. the

ge may be 1 received in said outer ring; and the distance from center 01' the hearing, {or the purpose set forth.

' the outer face oi the flange on said inner ring to the central plane or said raceway grooves less thanthe distance tromjthe centrarplane of said ram-m LEIS'I'ER. FRANK 'r. LYNCH. 

